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This is Info file cw-langs.info, produced by Makeinfo-1.43 from the input file copyrighted-languages.texi.
File: cw-langs.info, Node: Top
Copyrighted Programming Languages
===================================
by Richard Stallman
The GNU project has produced one of the best C compilers now in
existence. The reason I decided to write a C compiler, rather than
designing a new, completely clean language, is that C is the language
users' programs are written in. For a Unix-like system, a compiler
for C is absolutely essential.
If a new language becomes equally essential for a useful computer
system, will we be allowed to write a compiler for it?
Not if we want people in Europe to use the compiler. On May 15, the
European Community adopted a new directive for software copyright. It
establishes not only copyrighted user interfaces, but also copyrighted
protocols, copyrighted data formats, and copyrighted programming
languages.
Here is what the law says about interfaces:
Whereas for avoidance of doubt it has to be made clear that only
the expression of a computer program is protected and that ideas
and principles which underlie any elements of a program, including
those which underlie its interfaces, are not protected by
copyright under this directive;
This leaves room for the details of an interface--as opposed to the
underlying ideas--to be copyrighted.
The Legal Affairs Committee of the European Parliament recommended
changes to solve this problem for certain kinds of interfaces. They
proposed adding the following text:
Whereas, these unprotectible items include, for example,
protocols for communication, rules for exchanging or mutually
using information that has been exchanged, formats for data, and
the syntax and semantics of a programming language;
This amendment was rejected after serious debate in which the
conservative party especially opposed it. The importance given to the
question shows that it was regarded as a substantive change--that
Parliament believes the law as written permits copyright on the syntax
and semantics of a programming language.
The principal supporters of these broad and dangerous monopolies
were a few large computer companies: IBM, Digital, Apple and Siemens.
(Only one of them is a European company.) Many smaller companies
formed the European Committee for Interoperable Systems to lobby
against interface monopolies, but had little success.
What about the United States?
Ashton-Tate is once again pushing its case for a copyright on the
programming language used in DBase. Last winter, the judge ruled that
the copyright on DBase was invalid because Ashton-Tate had failed to
inform the copyright office that part of the program was an earlier,
public domain program made at JPL.
It turns out that the "part" in question was the programming
language--no part of the program at all!
More recently, the judge reversed his own decision. The case is now
proceeding.
The latest version of the System V Interface Definition claims that
the interface is copyrighted. Adobe says the Postscript language is
copyrighted. You can bet that IBM, Digital and Apple are telling
Congress loud and clear that programming languages should be
copyrighted. And they will point to the European law as proof this is
the best policy.
So, the next time you adopt a new language, will we be allowed to
add support for it in the GNU compiler? Not in Europe, and probably
not in the US either.
Since surveys show most programmers disapprove of these
restrictions, most likely you do too. The question is whether you
want to do anything about it. You can speak up and have an effect on
the decision, or you can do nothing and let IBM, Digital and Apple do
all the talking.
The FSF is doing what it can. We joined the League for Programming
Freedom as an institutional member, as seven companies have also done.
Some of the FSF staff number among the 600 individual League members.
I'm going to spend all of June giving a talk each day in Europe,
trying to stir up opposition.
However, it takes more than 600 people to win this battle. So the
most important thing we can do is to publish this article. Now, you
know how to help. The outcome is up to you.
From the League membership form:
The League for Programming Freedom is a grass-roots organization
of professors, students, businessmen, programmers and users
dedicated to bringing back the freedom to write programs. The
League is not opposed to the legal system that Congress
intended--copyright on individual programs. Our aim is to
reverse the recent changes made by judges in response to special
interests, often explicitly rejecting the public interest
principles of the Constitution.
Membership dues in the League are $42 per year for programmers,
managers and professionals; $10.50 for students; $21 for others.
If you have any questions, please write to the League, phone
(617) 243-4091, or send Internet mail to league@prep.ai.mit.edu.
To join, please send a check and the following information to:
League for Programming Freedom
1 Kendall Square #143
P.O. Box 9171
Cambridge, MA 02139
Your name:
The address where we should send League mailings, a few each year;
please indicate whether it is your home address or your work address:
The company you work for, and your position:
Your phone numbers (home, work or both):
Your email address, so we can contact you for demonstrations or for
writing letters. (If you don't want us to contact you for these
things, please say so, but please give us your email address anyway.)
Is there anything about you which would enable your endorsement of the
LPF to impress the public? For example, if you are or have been a
professor or an executive, or have written software that has a good
reputation, please tell us.
Would you like to help with LPF activities?
AT&T Threatens Users of X Windows
=================================
This spring, AT&T sent threatening letters to every member of the X
Consortium, including MIT, saying they need to pay royalties for the X
Window server. This is because AT&T has patented the use of "backing
store" in a multiprocessing window system (patent number 4,555,775).
MIT is looking into how to fight AT&T in court if necessary.
Earlier work done on the MIT Lisp machine may serve as prior art to
defeat this patent. Or it may not. We can't tell what will happen
until the judge decides.
IBM also has a patent on something similar, which may also endanger
X Windows. They claim patent 4,653,020 covers any system which
supports multiple windows in which some windows have full copies
offscreen.
Meanwhile, Cadtrak continues to demand royalties from the users of X
Windows for using exclusive-or to write on the screen, which is covered
by patent number 4,197,590.
The GNU system won't be terribly useful if it can't have X Windows.
But that isn't the only essential system feature which is in danger.
Emacs is threatened by IBM patent number 4,674,040 which covers "cut
and paste between files" in a text editor. And patent number
4,687,353 seems to cover setting a tab stop in a text editor for
indented text. Many Emacs features are threatened by patent number
4,458,311, which covers "text and numeric processing on same screen".
Not to mention patent number 4,398,249 covering the general
technique known in spreadsheets as "natural order recalc".
If we have to fight one of these patents in court, we will use up
all our funds doing it.
There is little the FSF itself can do about these threats. We have
added a provision to version 2 of the GPL so that we can prohibit
distribution of one of our programs in a certain country if it is
covered by patents there. Most likely, that country will be the
United States.
Beyond that, we have joined the League for Programming Freedom,
which is trying to get patents out of the software field. If you are a
system programmer, chances are you, too, will find you can't do your
work without infringing these patents. Not to mention the thousands
of other patents that apply to software. Doesn't it make sense for
you to join the League for Programming Freedom?
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